Bride of Adron | ✓

Chapter 11 - Jawad

Noelle was slowly awoken by a harsh surface rubbing against her cheek. She blinked her weary eyes open, rubbing to wipe away the leftover sleep on her eyes. Stifling a yawn, Noelle slowly turned over to look at what woke her up.

It was a sheet of neatly folded paper, lying on her pillow with her name written on it in small, neat writing. She opened it up and read what it said.

Good morning!

I'm at the stables with Harrison, so come join me when you wake up. We can give you a tour.

- Karol

And so, Noelle rushed to get herself dressed, putting on a light green dress she had packed in her bag and a blazer. Quickly, she borrowed Lolita's hairbrush to style her hair and popped a mint in her mouth before leaving the house. She almost forgot to leave her friends a note informing them where she was.

Noelle already knew the way to go, so she quickly met with Karol. She could not see him when she first approached the stables, and only could spot Harrison's back. However, she could hear his soft humming as he sang a song that sounded oddly familiar to her, yet she could not quite place her finger on it.

"Morning Karol, Harrison," Noelle greeted, pushing open the door and entering inside. Harrison turned to face her, flicking his tail in glee as he nuzzled her face. "What are you doing?"

"Hi Noelle," Karol replied, a huge smile flickering onto his face as soon as he saw her. He was dressed differently than the day before, with much cleaner and neater clothes. "I'm just brushing out Harrison." He motioned to the monstrous brush he held in his hand.

"Oh! Can I help?"

"If you want to, here," Karol said, handing her the brush. "Make sure you brush the right way though."

Weaving the brush through Harrison's smooth hair, Noelle felt calmed. With each stroke, it felt like another small trouble or worry was eroded away, since she could focus on the one thing she was doing in the present. She could clearly see that Harrison's sleek white coat had been well cared for by Karol, and that he was a horse dearly loved by his family.

"He's beautiful," she commented, and Karol agreed. She finished brushing Harrison's hair and moved to caress his head, gliding her hands over his cheeks.

"Are we ready to go?" Karol asked, and Noelle realised he was waiting for her.

"Sorry- yeah, let's go!" Being with Karol, Noelle felt like an awkward pre-teen who was only just new to dating.

He held out his hand to help her onto Harrison, and she sat in the back with her arms wrapped around his waist. Karol did not object, not even mutter a word, so Noelle took it as a sign of comfort. They took off, and Noelle watched as Karol expertly controlled the reigns and steered them down the empty street.

Unlike any other villages that Noelle had visited during her time in Dacnella, the streets of Hunter's Ville were completely devoid of people.

Something inside Noelle stirred when she felt Karol's warm body pressed against hers. She felt like she was on a rocking ship, swinging back and forth as she couldn't decide what to do with herself. Shaking her head to dispel any further thoughts, Noelle focused on the world ahead of them.

"So, why do you call yourself the Hunters?" Noelle asked, blurting the first question on her mind. Karol collected his thoughts before he answered.

"A long, long time ago, our ancestors were known as the greatest Hunters in all of Dacnella. Only then, it wasn't called Dacnella yet. Back then, Dacnella was divided into five separate Kingdoms, each ruled by a King and Queen," he explained.